BROWNVERSE: The Heartless Men And Mystery
by mymistrust
Summary: SCENE 03 IS UP! \\ Dunham won't stop investigating the mysteries of the hearts - and she may find out what she didn't want to. SET IN THE BROWN BETTY UNIVERSE. CLICK FOR FULL SUMMARY.
1. Teaser

**TITLE**: BROWNVERSE: The Heartless Men And Mystery

**STATUS:** WIP

**RATING**: PG13

**CATEGORY**: Parody \ Humour \ Adventure \ Mystery

**SPOILERS**: Solely the "Brown Betty" episode.

**WARNINGS:** Do not archive without my knowledge. Written by a non-native English speaker. Not proof-read. Pardon me.

**SUMMARY**: SET ON THE BROWN BETTY UNIVERSE. After splitting his heart in two, Peter goes back to work with Dr. Bishop, in order to fix the damages he had done. Meanwhile, an unexpected client walks in Olivia Dunham's office, making her investigate once again the mysteries involving Peter Bishop's glass heart - only there is more behind Massive Dynamic than the detective can imagine.

**DISCLAIMERS:** Nope. Peter belongs to Olivia, and they both, along with their gang, belong to JJ Abrams, FOX and everything in between.

**NOTES:** I'm really nervous about starting this project. I've been mulling over this idea for quite a while, since I first watched "Brown Betty", and after months of reading fanfiction and not finding ONE that was set on the BB's Universe, I felt like I had no choice but to write my own story.

And besides, we don't actually _know_ how the story really ends. What will the Watchers do? Will Nina Sharp let go of the glass heart so easily? How Walter plan to fix all the damage he has done? Detective Duhnam will keep up her work, partnered with Esther? Will Duhnam and Peter go out for a dance?

Those, my friends, are the questions I want to answer here. I have no idea how long this will take, or even how long this will _get_, but I'm up to the challenge. At moments like these is that we writers really need some comments, because I don't know if I'm doing this right. I'm always open to suggestions and all, so feel free to speak your mind.

As you guys can see, I'm still working on a title...

A cookie to anyone who spots another fandom in between the lines of this teaser (it ain't easy, only if you know the other fandom very well!)!

* * *

**TEASER**

* * *

On a dark and dirty alley, a bald man wearing a fedora hat lurks.

The noise of muffled jazz tune infiltrates the quiet city night, and a red sign indicating BETTY BROWN'S BAR blinks on and off. A dog barks from a distance, and on the main street, not many cars pass by, for it's too late and this area of Boston is too dangerous and too unattractive to the night life. Even so, Betty Brown's Bar always has its costumers.

And some quite strange costumers.

At this very moment, a black limousine pulls over in front of Betty Brown's, a sight quite out of the ordinary, even for the bald man, so accustomed to the extraordinary. A short, red-haired woman comes out of the vehicle, her stern face showing that even though she is a woman, and even though she has clear age signs on her brow, she knows exactly what she wants – and she always _get_ what she wants.

Her mobile telephone start ringing from inside her purse. She sighs, exasperated, while opening her purse and picking up the telephone. "What is it? I'm at Betty Brown's, and he is already inside", a beat, while the other person talks, "Look, this is not the time for this, I'm on my way to meet..." and she is silenced by the other person. "I'm sure we can talk them out of it, we did it before." another beat, this time, longer. "I know, and that is precisely why I'm here, remember? When I get back we can set up a meeting with Mr. Taurus and talk about our conditions. Now I have to go."

Nina Sharp hangs up, takes a deep breath and walks in the bar, to be swallowed by cigar smoke and jazz tunes.

Inside, she searches for someone. It is pretty crowded for the Betty Brown's standard, but Nina manages her way between drunk fellows and the wooden tables, until she reaches the far end of the bar, where only one person sits, away from the big crowd and the smoke.

"I'm sorry for the late hour, I had to make sure I lost my tail".

"It's ok." the man with grey hair says. "Please, have a seat."

Nina Sharp smiles and sits down next to him. "So, how's everything, Walter?"

Walter Bishop raises his head to her, and smiles. "Wonderful, my dear. Wonderful."

Outside the bar, the bald man observes Nina and Walter through the glass window, while they share a friendly hug and she orders a drink for herself.

He turns around and disappears on the shadows of the alley.

* * *

**- END OF TEASER -**

* * *

**OPENING CREDITS IN BROWN**


	2. In Which Detective Dunham Is Hired

**WARNINGS:** Do not archive without my knowledge. Written by a non-native English speaker. Not proof-read. Pardon me.

* * *

– **SCENE 01 –**

**In Which Detective Dunham Is Hired**

* * *

From Detective Dunham's office comes a soft Barry White's tune, his latest vinyl playing on the record player. It is almost time to close down: outside, the sunset gives the city an orange glow of its own, and when entering the detective's office, filtered by half-closed blinds and dust, gives the otherwise stuffy room a snug feeling that only its one occupant can enjoy.

Private Detective Olivia Dunham once wanted to retire from her line of work – for several reasons, the biggest one being that she could not solve the greatest mystery of all: how to mend a broken heart. Fortunately for her (which would only sound "fortunate" after the wholeness of the tragic, life-threatening events occurred), just as she was packing her things from her office, a blonde woman named Rachel walked in and hired her to search for her missing sweetheart.

It turned out that Rachel's heart wasn't so sweet – and that her real name wasn't even Rachel, but Kelsey, an actress hired to play the role of an anguished girlfriend. It also happened that Rachel's supposed sweetheart had, in fact, a heart of glass, which Detective Dunham helped recover, otherwise its owner, one Peter Bishop, would die. Yet in addition, it also turned out that in return of finding his heart of glass, Detective Dunham would have her own heart stolen – and mended, by this very man named Peter Bishop.

Not that he is aware of that fact, of course.

Because Olivia's line of work had taught her one sacred rule, that spilled over in every other aspect of her life: _discretion is the key of success_. And besides, he hadn't invited her for a dance yet.

Oh hell, why hadn't he invited her for a dance yet?

Olivia Dunham was pondering all these facts in her mind, while sitting lazily on her chair, legs propped up on her desk, when the office door was opened and Esther Ficklesworth, her very efficient assistant, popped in with a smile, and said: "Detective Dunham, are you busy...?" she asked, before she could take in the whole picture: Dunham's relaxed position, a cigar in her right hand, a glass of whiskey on the other, soft music as her background.

Dunham smirked. "Actually, I am. Barry White got my full attention."

Esther rolled her eyes. "Boredom doesn't look good on you" she said, shaking her head slightly. "There is someone here who wants to hire you."

It was Olivia's time to roll her eyes. "And here I was thinking that I would call it a day soon... Please tell me it's not another cheated wife or abandoned girlfriend".

"Oh, I think you're going to like this" was all Esther said, as she opened the door wider and gave way to a blonde woman, wearing a beautiful hat that covered her face.

Upon seeing this, and the other woman's fancy dress, Olivia Dunham was certain that what she would be dealing here was a cheated _and rich _wife. "Mrs, I'm sorry to start this out like this, but I have experience in this line of work, so I'll spare us both time. Your husband probably is..."

"I'm not here for my husband, Ms Dunham" said the woman, and to Olivia's ears, her voice sounded extremely familiar. "I'm here for my sister" and then, she raised her head, revealing Rachel's – or rather, Kelsey's – face, staring at Olivia with tears in her eyes.

The detective let her cigar drop on the ashtray and the glass of whiskey was rapidly forgotten by its side. "Well, didn't you already hire me?" she said, not so sure what that was all about.

"My twin sister, Kelsey, did" was the other woman's reply. "And because of that, she was killed." she made a brief pause, as she took a deep breath and held her head high, holding back the tears. "I want to know who did it, Ms Dunham, and I want them to pay".

Olivia looked intently at her eyes, and she recognised that look easily – she would often see it in her own face, sometimes, when she was working on a tough case that required more than she thought she could handle.

"Since you were involved in her case, I thought I should go straight here" she said, stepping closer. "The police just won't listen to me any more."

Esther, who was still standing at the door jamb, wiggled her eyebrows at her boss. "Oh, have a seat, Ms..." started Dunham, finally out of her initial daze of seeing Kelsey's face again.

"Rachel, you can call me Rachel" said the woman, sitting down.

Esther gave her a thumbs up and left the office, closing the door behind her.

Olivia couldn't help but smile – both at Rachel and Esther. "Rachel, hun." she leaned forward over her desk. "Let me tell you something, _Rachel,_ since, as you said, I was involved in your sister's case: we know exactly who killed her."

"Then why won't any of you do anything about it?" questioned Rachel, in a fit of rage. "Why do you sit here instead of chasing down her killer? Who is he to be above the law? Doesn't he have to pay for his mistakes?"

Detective Dunham could do nothing else but agree with Rachel. Unfortunately, she knew of more details in this story to understand that things weren't so simple as they seemed. "Listen, Rachel, I'm very sorry for your loss, but... I don't know what Lieutenant Broyles told you, but your sister got involved with some bad, shadowy people."

"And that makes you afraid to face them, is that it?"

There. Rachel said the magic words. She had just challenged Detective Olivia Dunham to face shadowy figures involved in shadowy business – she couldn't possibly let that pass. It would be against her very nature to do so.

"Absolutely not" was her answer. Olivia had known that this whole thing would surface again – there still were too many loose ends, and too many bad people that got away too easily for her taste. A month had passed since the events of the heart of glass and, with no new leads, and with a distraction of the heart named Peter Bishop, the private detective had let it pass for a while.

But Rachel was there, and she demanded justice. "Then you'll take my case?" she asked, hopeful.

"Yes, I will" Olivia said, leaning back. "Things are going to be difficult, though."

"How come? You just told me you know who killed my sister!" exclaimed Rachel.

"Well, I _do_ know, but I have no idea how we can find him, or _who_ he is, really, and since then I have no new leads on the case" Dunham explained, starting to get preoccupied. "We know that your sister was hired by Dr. Walter Bishop to come to me and hire me to look for Peter, and the next thing I know of her, she was dead and her heart was gone."

"Why would they do that?" asked Rachel, "why would they steal her _heart_?"

Indeed, thought Detective Dunham, why would they steal her heart?

In fact, everything related to this case seemed to involve hearts in some level – glass hearts, ripped off hearts, emotional hearts... What was that about hearts and those "Watchers" guys and Nina Sharp?

"Ms Dunham" murmured Rachel, upon noticing that Olivia was too busy thinking to even reply to her last query, that apparently fell on deaf years. "Ms Dunham, you need to find who did it. He needs to pay for what he did to my sister..."

Dunham looked up at Rachel's pained face. She didn't have siblings, but she could see in the other woman's eyes the pain one must feel when losing someone that close. She felt an unexplainable sympathy for that woman she barely knew. "Consider it done. You can talk with Ms Ficklesworth outside, she'll give our telephones' numbers and discuss on the matters of payment."

"Thank you, thank you so much, Ms Dunham!" Rachel got up, eyes glimmering with tears, and walked out of the office.

Olivia Dunham took a deep breath and smirked. "Well, well, well" she said, "it seems like Olivia Dunham has a new old case to investigate."

* * *

**NOTES:** So, I brought Rachel back. Because I like Rachel and I thought it wouldn't be the same thing without her! Also, the Watchers in Brown Betty's Universe aren't so much as "watching", but more likely "acting", don't you think? They're different from the Observers, so I'll be treating them differently and describing them differently as well. After all, when in the real Fringe universe would you see a Watcher... I mean, an _Observer_ friggin' **working** for Nina Sharp or Walter Bishop, right? It wouldn't make any sense. They'll still be mysterious and all, but more palpable and less almighty.

I already have an idea for the title, but I won't reveal it until I'm 100% sure it is it, I hate to change titles in the middle of the way.

Thank you guys for the reviews! I hope I'm able to keep up with your expectations!

* * *

**FOLLOWING NEXT: ****"In Which Dunham Visits Once Again The Bishops' Laboratory".**


	3. In Which Dunham Visits The Bishops' Lab

**WARNINGS:** Do not archive without my knowledge. Written by a non-native English speaker. Not proof-read. Pardon me.

**NOTE:** It took me longer to post this because I was waiting for the new Fringe episode. Now that it's out there, I feel like celebrating it.

**ON THE TITLE:** I can always change it if no one likes it. =P

* * *

– **SCENE 02 –**

**In Which Dunham Visits Once Again The Bishops' Laboratory**

* * *

The fact that Peter Bishop only called her twice in the past month since they met didn't go unnoticed to Olivia. Actually, she could dare to say that it royally pissed her off every time she would think about it. But of course, she was nowhere _near_ of daring to say such thing out loud, because that is not how Detective Dunham deal with things.

As she and her assistant Esther Ficklesworth approached the Bishop's Laboratory door, she was very conscious that this would be the first time she would see Peter again after the events that occurred one month ago, and if she was going to be honest with herself, she was nervous. But again, she was nowhere _near_ of being honest with herself, so she told her mind to shut the hell up and focus on the job at hand.

As the two women stood at the laboratory's door, Esther glanced at the taller woman. "Are we going to get in?"

Dunham straightened her hat and sighed. "Sure. Let's go", and she opened the door, getting in and being greeted by a mooing coming from the coloured-dotted cow at the far end of the place, that was being petted by a very standing Dr. Bishop.

"Detective Dunham!" he exclaimed, turning around to greet the guests. "I haven't seen you in a while, dear! Even Gene is happy to see you!" and he grinned looking fondly at the cow, that mooed again.

"Hello, Dr. Bishop", she greeted. "I see that the heart did wonders to your legs", she indicated his standing position with a nod of her head.

"Oh, yes, wonders indeed! And I see that you bring a friend today" he let go of this petting the cow to walk towards the two women. "Hello, dear, I'm Dr. Walter Bishop" he said, offering his hand to Esther, who took it, smiling.

"Yes, I know. I'm Esther Ficklesworth, it's a pleasure to meet you, sir" she said, and as they ended the handshake, she added: "Detective Dunham talked a lot about you".

"Only good things, I hope" he said sheepishly, winking at Olivia.

Esther's smile faded. "Well, she told me about how you stole children's dreams..." She gulped, staring at the doctor.

As Walter's face drooped, Dunham cleared her throat. "Dr. Bishop, Esther is my assistant, and we are here to investigate on the death of Kelsey, in behalf of her sister".

Dr. Bishop raised an eyebrow, questioning. "The actress I hired to hire you?"

Dunham gave a half-smile. "That's the one".

"She had a sister?"

Esther jumped right on it, showing her efficiency: "A twin, to be more specific. Name's Rachel."

"She used her twin sister's name to a job undercover?" questioned the doctor, sceptically.

Esther cringed. "Uh, yes."

"Oh dear" lamented Walter "How absolutely unimaginative is that?"

"It's just sad", sighed Ms Ficklesworth.

Olivia cleared her throat, attracting their attention. "That's not the point here. We are here to investigate her death."

"Well..." Dr Bishop shrugged. "What is there to investigate? Wasn't she killed by the Watcher? That's what Peter told me you told him".

"Yes, and I think that the _who_ isn't the biggest question here, Dr., but rather the '_where can I find him_'", added Olivia, looking around the laboratory.

Dr. Bishop and Esther both mimicked Olivia's action, and looked around the place as well.

"Well" murmured the doctor, staring back at Olivia, who was still looking around. "Certainly not here, my dear."

The detective stopped her surveying around and fixed her eyes at Walter. "Right. I'm just..." _What_ was she just...?, questioned her mind to herself.

But she knew it. She was looking for Peter. She was _disappointed _that he hadn't been the one to greet her, and that he seemed to be nowhere around. Olivia Dunham was getting distracted – of all things, by the matters of the _heart_, and she hated it.

Esther knew better, and upon seeing Olivia's mind strand far away, she turned to Dr. Bishop and went straight to the point: "We were hoping you could tell us how to find those Watchers. Detective Dunham said that they once worked for Massive Dynamic and Nina Sharp, but at the end, you were able to bring them to your side."

"Do you have a way of contacting those men, Dr. Bishop?" Dunham was back at detective-mode. "Do you know where to find them?"

Dr. Bishop was slack-jawed, and he stuttered for a moment. "Well... Detective Dunham, I... I'm sorry to say this, but I don't have a way of contacting them. They came to me at that time and offered their help, and the man in question, one Mr. Gemini, wasn't among the ones that came to me."

Olivia Dunham wasn't buying a word she had just heard. "So they just came to you and offered help? That's the whole story?"

"Yes" answered Dr. Bishop, vehemently, as he turned around and sat at the nearer chair. "I never saw them again, and I certainly never saw the Watcher that killed Ms. Kelsey."

"That doesn't make any sense" said Esther all of a sudden. "Why would they work for Massive Dynamic and then offer you their help, Dr. Bishop?"

"Those men are dangerous, I can't possibly know what they want, Astrid", murmured the doctor.

"It's Esther" corrected Esther, a bit offended.

"Those men... As far as I know, they have an agenda of their own" he confessed, whispering, as if the walls had ears. "Ms Dunham, you need to be aware of that. If they were 'helping' me, they certainly were doing this for selfish reasons."

"But _who_ are they? What could they possibly want from you or Massive Dynamic?" she insisted, confused. "More specifically, why would they steal Kelsey's heart, Doctor?"

"Maybe..." he hesitated, thoughtful.

"Maybe...?" Olivia encouraged him to go on.

"Maybe they needed it for Massive Dynamic's plans" he suggested. "After all, those Watchers were working for that company, weren't they? At first they seemed very interested in the glass heart, but they brought it to me after all. And besides, it is widely known that hearts are the best power source we have in the world, they can be building something that requires a lot of heart power – like a nuclear bomb, that need all those poor soldier's hearts."

That rang a bell inside of Olivia's head. "Or like a door to another universe?"

Walter Bishop swirled around in his chair and looked at the detective. "Well, a _door_ to another universe definitely applies to the 'requires a lot of heart power'." He then clapped his hands, excited. "If this is really about crossing over between universes the glass heart is perfect. If not, many hearts, I guess, would do."

"Is it possible, then? Cross-over the universes?" Olivia was intrigued. She had heard about those theories before, now and then they would show up on the newspapers and on radio broadcasts, but it was all but speculation from the looks of it.

Walter shrugged. "In theory... And if someone discovered a way to do it, it certainly is someone being funded by Massive Dynamic. But this would require an enormous power source... Something like Peter Bishop's glass heart."

Upon hearing Peter's name, the detective swallowed hard. "Since you mentioned him..." she started, trying to sound anything but anxious. "Where is he, Dr. Bishop?"

The doctor smiled broadly, and Esther couldn't help but notice the tinge of something other than professional in her boss's voice. Olivia shifted her weight on her feet uncomfortably. "Well" started Walter, "He's probably browsing for some fresh papaya to my new experiments right now."

"New experiments?" asked Esther, looking around the place and seeing _many_ experiments being done, all at once.

"Have you been stealing dreams again, Dr?" asked Detective Dunham suspiciously.

Dr. Bishop lowered his head, ashamed. "I'm not proud of what I've done, Ms Dunham, as I have already told you... I am actually working on a project that is meant to cease all the bad I did in the past!" exclaimed him, getting suddenly excited.

"A vaccine against nightmares?" Esther sounded thrilled.

That made Dr. Bishop clap his hands once again. "Precisely, my dear Astrid!"

"_Esther!_", she said, irritated.

"But so far we've only failed... I have faith, though, that it won't take us much longer to finally figure it out."

"Well, Dr. Bishop, good luck with your vaccine then" Olivia said, turning around. "Please tell Peter Bishop I want to have a word with him about this case. He might shed some light on this mystery."

"Wait, where are we going now?" Esther hurriedly followed Dunham to the laboratory's door.

"Nowhere" was the detective's answer, as she turned to her assistant and to the doctor. "_I_ will do some more digging, and _you_ stay here, I'm sure Dr. Bishop won't mind some company, will you, Doctor?"

Walter's smile only god broader. "Oh, absolutely! Please, Ms Vingglesworth, it would be lovely to have you here!"

Esther rolled her eyes to the excited doctor, who had already started fumbling around with his experiments, eager to show her his new discoveries. She then turned to her boss, who was already halfway outside the laboratory. "Dunham" she called, whispering, "what is the plan? I don't understand."

The detective whispered back: "You stay here and keep an eye on Dr. Bishop, see if you can get anything out of him about the Watchers. I didn't buy that whole 'they offered me help' story. And when Peter Bishop gets here, you telephone me and I'll come right away."

"Ok... But where are you going?"

Olivia Dunham smirked. "You have one guess."

* * *

**NOTES:** It seems only fair that Walter calls Esther "Astrid".

It's ridiculously embarrassing how difficult it is to me to call Gene a "that" rather than a "who", you know. _Ridiculously_ embarrassing. Also, I'm constantly typing "Agent" instead of "Detective", so if I let it slip at some point, let me know and I'll correct it. =P

I'm going for the long names such as "telephone" instead of "phone" and "laboratory" instead of "lab" for a matter of the 'feel' of the story. It is, after all, a different universe, a 1950's film with laptops and mobile phones, so I figured I had to adapt a few things as well.

Guys, always remember to comment and let me know if you're feeling that something is off with the story. I'm trying my best here, to make it believable and suitable to the Brown Betty universe that we were presented. But if you like what you read, please, let me know as well. I'm on unknown territory here.

* * *

**FOLLOWING NEXT: ****"In Which Dunham And Sharp Play 20 Questions".**


	4. In Which The Ladies Play 20 Questions

**WARNINGS:** Do not archive without my knowledge. Written by a non-native English speaker. Not proof-read. Pardon me.

**NOTES:** I AM SO SORRY! I wasn't supposed to postpone this chapter for so long, but college is finally taking its toll on me! Now you'll have to be patient, it will probably take me longer to post the chapters, now that I have less time to write... But I *AM* writing, do not be fooled! I'll finish this story, don't worry. =P

* * *

– **SCENE 03 –**

**In Which Dunham And Sharp Play 20 Questions**

* * *

Massive Dynamic wasn't exactly what Detective Dunham would classify as "bad resort" - it was more likely a "bad _and necessary_ resort". She had no option but to go there and question Nina Sharp, although she was pretty sure she wouldn't get much more than dubious statements, and probably some lies in the middle, just to make it hard to sort them out.

She had been literally kidnapped by the woman only one month ago, whom had made sure to throw the detective in a lake while very well tied up and inside of a pine coffin. Olivia was pretty sure that this would be considered attempt of murder in any state, but she knew better: without hard proof against Nina Sharp, her accusations would fall on deaf ears.

As she drove to Massive Dynamic, many possible dialogues and accusations popped in her mind, most of them related to her own businesses with the older woman, but she knew she had to do her work before she could worry about herself – she had to find the Watcher that killed Kelsey, and bring some closure to a grieving sister. Only then she would feel comfortable enough to pursue her own questions.

As she stepped inside the entry hall of Massive Dynamic, Detective Dunham had already made up her mind about her speech, and how she would try to squeeze every single piece of information she could get from Nina Sharp – but all of her resolve dissolved like salt in water when she entered the woman's office and was met by not one, but two people: Nina Sharp herself and no one less than Lieutenant Broyles.

"Detective Dunham", greeted Broyles, turning to her, anything but happy to see her there. "What a coincidence to meet you here".

"I could say the same" replied Olivia, not sure what to make of it.

"Lieutenant Broyles was just leaving" said Nina, closing a date-book she had in hands. "Have a seat, and let's talk about what brings you here once again".

"It was a pleasure talking to you, Ms Sharp. I assure you things will end in a suitable way for both parties" murmured Broyles, taking off his hat in recognition. "Have a good evening, Dunham" he said to the other woman, just the slightest tone of irony in his voice, as he put his hat back on and walked past Olivia, not even sparing her a glance.

When his footsteps were out of earshot, the detective turned to Nina Sharp and said: "You tried to kill me".

"And I have failed" replied the other woman, sitting down and indicating the chair next to Dunham. "Sit, and I'll explain everything".

Olivia snorted. "I know you're all about making your way in enterprise's politics and all, Ms Sharp, but I don't see how you could possibly _explain_ an attempted murder".

Nina's resolve was rock-solid, though, and she just stared at the detective, frowning, inviting her to sit down and listen – almost _challenging _her to sit down and listen. Olivia Dunham had a weak spot for challenges, even the unspoken ones – _especially_ the unspoken ones – so it took her all but five seconds to finally give in and sit down. At the very least, she thought, as she took off her hat, this would be a very entertaining tall-tale to listen to.

"If I wanted you dead, Ms Dunham, you can be sure that you would be" Nina started, leaning back on her chair. "The Reiden lake incident had nothing to do with an attempted murder."

Olivia snorted. "And how do you call that? Sending me to a place far, far away where I wouldn't be able to tell anyone about... William Bell?"

Nina Sharp shifted uncomfortably on her seat. "We used you as bait to Peter Bishop... Unfortunately, at that time I didn't know the Watchers had already been done with me."

Olivia shook her head, feeling a bit lost. "Done with you?"

"Those men are dangerous – I'm sure I've told you that already" explained Nina. "I thought we had them under control, but I was wrong. They have many serendipitous manners to fool you into believing they are on your side."

"'They have an agenda of their own'" quoted Dunham, thinking about what Walter Bishop had told her not long ago.

"Exactly", agreed Nina.

"And what is it? Their agenda?"

She stared sceptically at Detective Dunham. "Why are you asking me this question, Detective? You already know I don't have the answer for this one."

"You see" Olivia crooked her head to one side, giving the red-haired woman a cynical smile. "I don't quite believe everything you tell me as being written in stone."

Nina shrugged. "Believe in whatever you want to believe, Ms Dunham. I don't have the answer for this question."

"How did you contact them?"

"I didn't, they always came to me."

"The man who attacked me with the quantum laser..."

"Mr. Gemini"

"Mr. Gemini. Is he the leader?"

"'Leader' isn't an easy word to explain, at least not when it involves the Watchers."

Dunham snorted once again. "I'm not here to discuss semantics with you, Ms Sharp. I want answers."

"And I've been giving you them, even though I have no reason to do so." replied Nina sharply, leaning forward. "I don't know much about the Watchers than you do, and you should be aware of that. They appear and disappear as they please, and this is how they work."

"Mr Gemini killed Kelsey because you ordered him to."

Nina swallowed and stared intently at Olivia. "This is some serious accusations you are making, Detective."

"Her murder is still unsolved, Ms Sharp." Dunham simply shrugged, and carefully observed the other woman's reactions. "I'm merely gathering the facts I've been presented, and so far they all point at one direction."

"And that direction would be me?" Nina was too calm for someone being accused of such an act, but again, Dunham wasn't expecting anything different.

"We know about the quantum laser" teased Olivia, giving a half-smile of victory.

Nina let out a laugh. "Anyone in our health department could have access to that tool, Detective. This isn't hard proof. And even though you haven't asked directly, _No, _I did _not_ ask Mr Gemini to kill that poor girl. Why would I do that?"

"Hm, to get her heart?" offered Dunham, suggestively and ironically.

Nina Sharp shook her head, dismissing this option. "Why would I _want_ her heart? I wanted the glass heart, not some actress's defective heart."

Upon hearing that, Olivia jumped right on it. "Defective, was it? Her heart didn't work to open the 'door between the universes'?"

That did the trick. Nina's poker face dissolved as she clenched her jaw and took a deep breath. "I don't know what you've overheard while snooping around my house, Detective, but things are far more complicated than that."

"More complicated than opening a door to _another universe_?" Dunham felt like laughing, but just stared at Nina, sceptical.

"Ms Sharp" the call came from the door, and both women turned in that direction. Nina's secretary, all dressed in black, was at the door. "The council has already been gathered, they are only waiting for you."

"Well, this twenty question game was all very fun to play, but if you excuse me, Detective Dunham, I have appointments to attend to" she said, as she got up from her seat. "You can show yourself out, I'm sure."

"I'm not done yet" said Olivia, even though she knew that, at least for the time being, that would be all she would get from Nina Sharp.

"If you have anything solid against me, which I doubt, then we'll talk again" replied Nina, halfway to the door. "But let me give you one advice. Just think about it. To whom did the Watchers turn over the heart of glass?"

And with that, Nina left Detective Dunham alone in her office – and when Olivia turned and didn't see the secretary, she leaned forward over the table and opened the date-book where the page was marked – the date was two days from the present day, and there, she read: _"Philip. Betty Brown's Bar, 9pm._"

**

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**FOLLOWING NEXT:**

**IN WHICH PETER MAKES HIS APPEARANCE**


End file.
